Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

in its range, with or without the implied tribute to all its '70s yesterdays. For while the Smart and Sport twins are essentially cafe-racer versions of the Monster family, adorned with period styling, both to appeal to 50-something fans of the way it was and to allow younger cus- tomers to make a two-wheeled retro fash- ion statement, the GT1000 is a thoroughly modern motorcycle, which just happens to be clothed in various '70s-styling refer- ences. It's a bike destined to compete with the BMW F800 in serving the standard- class naked-bike market, and for which there deserves to be a definite demand away from the Memory Lane mob. As such, it's a two-wheeled equivalent of the equally admirable born-again Mini, a vehicle that, in concept, pays tribute to its historic forebearer; but in practice, repre- sents a valid contender in the general mar- ketplace, rather than merely a modern pas- tiche of an iconic period product, such as today's VW Beetle or Triumph Scrambler. To that extent, using the GT1000 as a mount with which to follow the 2006 edi- tion of Il Motogiro, the annual six-day tour of Italy sponsored by Ducati - which sees a platoon of mid-50s singles, mostly Italian, sort-of re-create the famous annual open- roads-stage race that was killed off by the death toll in the corresponding 1957 Mille Miglia car race - not only was appropriate in a retro sort of way, but also underlined the bike's genuine values as a go-anywhere all- arounder. Covering upward of 620 miles in the first four days of the "race," allowed me to give the new bike a real-world road test of the kind that's unfeasible at any press launch. Oh, by the way, it passed. So after throwing a leg over the GT1000's rational 830mm-high seat - the fairly upright twin Sachs rear shocks deliv- ering 133mm of travel, dictate a slightly tall ride height that is undeniably plush and quite spacious for longer rides. There's also plenty of room for a passenger. I found an upright, yet ultra comfy, riding position delivered in conjunction with the flat one- piece handlebar which, unlike its sister models in the SportClassics family, doesn't give you terminal wrist ache after half an hour of riding. This results in a relatively nimble, agile mount that proved not only ideal for carving corners in cities, but unex- pectedly practical for high-speed mile-eat- ing as well - though at anymore than 100 mph on the autostrada, you'll start looking for Chrysler Voyagers to draft. "I use my GT1000 every day for riding to work and running errands around Bologna," declared Ducati president Federico Minoli as we crossed paths on identical bikes. "The upright riding position lets you see over cars to plan your route, and the wide bar makes it very agile in tight corners and to weave through traffic. It's as practical as a scooterone [a maxi-scooter], but much more fun to ride - but then when you get out of town, there's no compari- son. This is a motorcycle that's truly poly- valente - a real go-anywhere bike." Can't argue with any of that, though perhaps Federico was being slightly diplo- matic in not identifying a key reason for the GT1000's superior street skills compared to other current Ducati models, and that's the new hydraulic multiple-plate oil-bath clutch incorporated on it, and, for the first time, on any modern desmo V-twin engine. This has a much lighter pull and more progressive action than any of the dry- clutch transmissions fitted to the rest of Ducati's current range, which means it's easier to use and your left hand especially doesn't cramp up after half an hour riding in town - as it will on other more sporting desmodue models, such as the Smart/ Sport cafe racers and S2R Monster. Ducati's chief engineer, Gianluigi Mengoli, says these will continue to be fitted with the stiff-action dry clutch, while the smoother wet-clutch transmission of the GT1000 will soon be shared with the Multistrada and, in due course, the new Hypermotard. "It's all a question of improved materi- als, and reduced tolerances," said Mengoli. "The aluminum plates and housing, which comprise the new clutch, are the biggest single factor in making it easier to use, as well as making the engine much quieter and seemingly more refined than before. This is thanks to the lower-resonance value of alloy compared to steel, and the closer tolerances this material permits. And the oil-bath clutch provides a more progres- sive action, which suits this bike well. I'm glad you liked it - we've worked very hard on improving this feature, after all the complaints about our clutch in the past." Indeed, the GT1000's upgraded twin- spark desmodue motor is the best two- valver Ducati has made yet, delivering the same 92 horsepower at 8000 rpm as the other SportClassics, allied with muscular midrange torque peaking with 91.1Nm/ 9.3kgm at 6000 rpm, with notably less engine clatter than on previous such engines, and none of the excessive vibration of the early-generation 94x71.5mm dual-ignition motor, when first maxxed out to 992cc in the 1000DS SuperSport three years ago. Ongoing development had already resulted in a Testastretta-style reduced valve angle (now with a 45mm inlet valve to match the Marelli EFI's 45mm single- injector throttle bodies, and 40mm exhaust), to deliver improved combustion; and now there are thinner, stronger con- necting rods made from a new chrome- moly steel composition; nitrided-steel pis- ton rings; beryllium-bronze valve seats, which maintain valve clearances better for longer (and if you've ever had to set the clearances on a desmo V-twin, you'll know what a big advantage that is!); and a new more compact but stiffer crank. The resultant performance package delivers brisk acceleration between 4000 and 7000 rpm, which is the engine's com- fort zone that you'll find yourself operating in most of the time via the wide spread of power and sweet-shifting six-speed gear- box whose change action is now flawless. Mengoli & Co. deserve a big compliment for improving Ducati transmissions so much in recent years, because the GT1000 has a smooth, precise and light shift action that's now fully up to Japanese standards, i.e. the best. There's no slipper clutch, though, so you must take care not to use too many revs stopping for a slower turn, even with the quite high variable idle speed delivered by the ECU's stepper motor as previously fit- ted to the Multistrada. This allows the cold- start mechanism to be junked - so there's no longer a choke lever. Anyway, you don't need to use so much engine braking to stop hard, as repeated heavy use of the 320mm Brembo front brakes proved when descending from the mountains. That's in spite of only twin-piston calipers being fit- ted, rather than the four-pot ones of more modern sportbikes, because of the reduced space available with wire wheels on the side facing the spokes. Weighing 407 pounds dry, there isn't as much to stop as on heavier water-cooled bikes - but the air- cooled GT1000 braked impressively well. That seat is very comfortable - it's much narrower where it meets the fuel tank than on the less-rational cafe-racer duo, and you'll have no aches after a long day's ride, thanks also to the relatively high rear-set footpegs that are positioned just right to be comfortable, while still delivering good ground clearance once you start exploring the bike's limits. The bike comes with Michelin Pilot Classic tires, in preference to the Pirelli Phantom Sportscom rubber, complete with period tread pattern, fitted to the other SportClassics cafe-racer mod- els. Presumably, this was done in the mis- taken belief that the handling needed slow- ing down via the French tires' rounder pro- files, but I think this was a mistake. C Y C L E N E W S • AUGUST 16, 2006 57

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